cigarette.
17
“You don’t know anything about it?” I asked when the tears had 18
passed. “I mean, you didn’t even read about it or hear it on the 19
news?”
20
“Brawly’s been busy,” Clarissa told me.
21
“Shut your mouth,” Brawly warned.
22
I wouldn’t have been suspicious if he followed his own advice.
23
“Busy doin’ what?”
24
“Who are you, man?” Brawly asked me.
25
“Friend’a Alva Torres doin’ a good deed by her boy.”
26
“I ain’t got nuthin’ to do with her,” Brawly told me.
27
“That’s your mother, honey,” Clarissa said. “That’s blood.”
28
“And just about the only drop left,” I added. “She’s concerned 29
about you. When she asked me to find you, I told her she probably 30 S
didn’t need to worry. But now that I seen the mess your life is in, I 31 R
understand why she wants you to come home.”
9 0
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B A D B O Y B R AW LY B R O W N
“I don’t have no home. They kicked me out.”
1
“I don’t believe that for one second, son. Your mama loves you 2
even if you don’t care for yourself.”
3
“He’s right, baby,” Clarissa said.
4
“You don’t know shit, Clarissa. So don’t be tryin’ to tell me 5
nuthin’.”
6
“The cops gonna look hard at you if they think you were fighting 7
with him,” I said.
8
“That was almost two months ago,” Brawly said. “We made up 9
since then.”
10
“Where were you Saturday morning?” I asked.
11
“Up north,” Brawly said. “I left Friday night.”
12
“Can you prove that?”
13
A guilty look flashed on the boy’s face. He seemed to hold him-14
self back from looking at Clarissa.
15
“People saw me,” he said evasively.
16
“Who?”
17
“Why I got to answer to you? Who the fuck are you to come in 18
here in the middle’a the night and question me?” Brawly said.
19
When he rose up from the couch my heart did a double thump 20
to get enough blood into action in case I needed to fight.
21
“I don’t have to talk to you.”
22
“I’m just tryin’ to help you, boy,” I said.
23
I made the mistake of putting my hand on his shoulder.
24
Brawly shoved both arms out at me and I went backward. My 25
feet actually left the ground. I felt the wall hit my back and my left 26
ankle twist as my foot touched down.
27
Clarissa said, “Baby.”
28
The front door slammed open.
29
When I looked up I saw Brawly storming out into the street, leav-S 30
ing his girlfriend with a strange man in the middle of the night.
R 31
9 1
REAL PAGES
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1
2
14 / CLARISSA RAN TO THE DOOR but she didn’t try to stop Brawly. She must have gone through this
3
with him before, his childish anger overruling his common sense, 4
even his common decency.
5
I considered going after the boy but doubted that either my 6
words or my fists would have made much of an impression. I could 7
have shot him but didn’t think that John or Alva would have taken 8
kindly to that.
9
“I’m sorry,” I said, wanting to somehow make up for the boy.
10
“It’s okay. Brawly don’t mean it. It’s just that he get so mad some-11
times. It ain’t his fault.”
12
“I told Alva that I’d make sure that he was okay. I guess he is. I 13
mean, you say this is normal for him, right?”
14 S
I was at a loss with Clarissa. She didn’t have anything to do with 15 R
9 2
REAL PAGES
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B A D B O Y B R AW LY B R O W N
my job but there I was, intruding on her private life in the middle of 1
the night. I took a step toward the door.
2
“Is that stuff about Brawly’s father true?” she asked me.
3
“Yeah. Somebody killed him right there in Isolda’s house. She 4
thinks it must have been Brawly.”
5
“Is that what she told the police?”
6
“I don’t think she’s seen the cops yet.
17
“You don’t know anything about it?” I asked when the tears had 18
passed. “I mean, you didn’t even read about it or hear it on the 19
news?”
20
“Brawly’s been busy,” Clarissa told me.
21
“Shut your mouth,” Brawly warned.
22
I wouldn’t have been suspicious if he followed his own advice.
23
“Busy doin’ what?”
24
“Who are you, man?” Brawly asked me.
25
“Friend’a Alva Torres doin’ a good deed by her boy.”
26
“I ain’t got nuthin’ to do with her,” Brawly told me.
27
“That’s your mother, honey,” Clarissa said. “That’s blood.”
28
“And just about the only drop left,” I added. “She’s concerned 29
about you. When she asked me to find you, I told her she probably 30 S
didn’t need to worry. But now that I seen the mess your life is in, I 31 R
understand why she wants you to come home.”
9 0
REAL PAGES
12374_i-vi_1-314_r4sw.qxd 4/18/2002 2:00 PM Page 91
B A D B O Y B R AW LY B R O W N
“I don’t have no home. They kicked me out.”
1
“I don’t believe that for one second, son. Your mama loves you 2
even if you don’t care for yourself.”
3
“He’s right, baby,” Clarissa said.
4
“You don’t know shit, Clarissa. So don’t be tryin’ to tell me 5
nuthin’.”
6
“The cops gonna look hard at you if they think you were fighting 7
with him,” I said.
8
“That was almost two months ago,” Brawly said. “We made up 9
since then.”
10
“Where were you Saturday morning?” I asked.
11
“Up north,” Brawly said. “I left Friday night.”
12
“Can you prove that?”
13
A guilty look flashed on the boy’s face. He seemed to hold him-14
self back from looking at Clarissa.
15
“People saw me,” he said evasively.
16
“Who?”
17
“Why I got to answer to you? Who the fuck are you to come in 18
here in the middle’a the night and question me?” Brawly said.
19
When he rose up from the couch my heart did a double thump 20
to get enough blood into action in case I needed to fight.
21
“I don’t have to talk to you.”
22
“I’m just tryin’ to help you, boy,” I said.
23
I made the mistake of putting my hand on his shoulder.
24
Brawly shoved both arms out at me and I went backward. My 25
feet actually left the ground. I felt the wall hit my back and my left 26
ankle twist as my foot touched down.
27
Clarissa said, “Baby.”
28
The front door slammed open.
29
When I looked up I saw Brawly storming out into the street, leav-S 30
ing his girlfriend with a strange man in the middle of the night.
R 31
9 1
REAL PAGES
12374_i-vi_1-314_r4sw.qxd 4/18/2002 2:00 PM Page 92
1
2
14 / CLARISSA RAN TO THE DOOR but she didn’t try to stop Brawly. She must have gone through this
3
with him before, his childish anger overruling his common sense, 4
even his common decency.
5
I considered going after the boy but doubted that either my 6
words or my fists would have made much of an impression. I could 7
have shot him but didn’t think that John or Alva would have taken 8
kindly to that.
9
“I’m sorry,” I said, wanting to somehow make up for the boy.
10
“It’s okay. Brawly don’t mean it. It’s just that he get so mad some-11
times. It ain’t his fault.”
12
“I told Alva that I’d make sure that he was okay. I guess he is. I 13
mean, you say this is normal for him, right?”
14 S
I was at a loss with Clarissa. She didn’t have anything to do with 15 R
9 2
REAL PAGES
12374_i-vi_1-314_r4sw.qxd 4/18/2002 2:00 PM Page 93
B A D B O Y B R AW LY B R O W N
my job but there I was, intruding on her private life in the middle of 1
the night. I took a step toward the door.
2
“Is that stuff about Brawly’s father true?” she asked me.
3
“Yeah. Somebody killed him right there in Isolda’s house. She 4
thinks it must have been Brawly.”
5
“Is that what she told the police?”
6
“I don’t think she’s seen the cops yet.
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